Inter-American Accreditation Cooperation, A.C.
Inter-American Accreditation Cooperation, A.C.
IAAC maintains a cooperative relationship with the International Bureau of Weights and Measures (BIPM), aimed at strengthening international confidence in accredited results. Through this link, IAAC aligns its work with the recognition agreements of the BIPM and the International System of Units (SI), ensuring that the metrological traceability of measurements used in conformity assessment is fully consistent with global standards.
IAAC actively participates in the Conformity Assessment Committee of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO/CASCO), contributing to the development and revision of international conformity assessment standards. This participation takes place through national mirror committees in its member countries and by working in coordination with recognized liaison organizations such as IAF and ILAC, which represent the accreditation community within ISO/CASCO.
In this way, IAAC ensures that the perspectives and needs of the American continent and the Caribbean are reflected in global decision-making, strengthens the technical consistency of standards, and reinforces international confidence in accredited results from the region.
IAAC maintains a technical link with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), focused on the application of the joint ISO/IEC standards series, which form the international basis for conformity assessment bodies and accreditation processes. Through its participation in ISO/CASCO and in coordination with IAF and ILAC, IAAC helps ensure that accreditation criteria in the region are fully aligned with the international standards developed by ISO and IEC.
This relationship strengthens technical consistency, facilitates the global recognition of accredited results, and promotes international confidence in the quality infrastructure of the American continent and the Caribbean.
IAAC closely follows the work carried out by the International Network on Quality Infrastructure (INetQI), a global forum that brings together the leading international organizations in standardization, metrology, accreditation, and conformity assessment. This connection allows IAAC to stay aligned with international trends, promote technical consistency, and highlight the importance of accreditation in strengthening quality infrastructure worldwide.
IAAC maintains a cooperative link with the International Organization of Legal Metrology (OIML), aimed at strengthening credibility and technical consistency in legal metrology across the American continent and the Caribbean. Through its relationship with OIML and alignment with its recognition systems, such as the OIML-CS, IAAC supports confidence in measuring instruments used in trade, safety, and consumer protection.
This cooperation enhances the synergy between accreditation and legal metrology, facilitating international acceptance of results, market access, and the development of a stronger quality infrastructure in the region.
IAAC recognizes the framework established by the World Trade Organization (WTO), in particular the Agreements on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) and on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS), as a fundamental reference for its work in accreditation and conformity assessment. In this context, IAAC helps ensure that accredited results in the American continent and the Caribbean are consistent with the WTO principles of transparency, non-discrimination, and international recognition.
In this way, IAAC strengthens confidence in the region’s products and services, facilitates access to global markets, and supports the reduction of technical barriers to trade through a solid and reliable quality infrastructure.
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